I Have Always Loved You
by EyesWideOpenPenOut
Summary: 5 years ago, 5 teenagers made a second choice. But Valentin always knew how to lie to himself and others. Now, he must make a final decision...power or lust, the devil or love. Bice/Valentin. T for now... at least for a little bit. Read and enjoy!
1. Fill the Void Where Her Eyes Used to Be

I DO NOT OWN ANOTHER FAUST. IF I DID, HOWEVER, VICTORIA WOULD BE AN EMPTY SHELL, BICE WOULDN'T BE AN OLD LADY, AND VALENTIN WOULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ANY CUTE GIRL HE SEES, ALL THE WHILE SECRETLY LONGING FOR THE ONE PERSON WHO HE'S ALWAYS WANTED YET NEVER SEEMS TO GLANCE AT HIM. THEN AGAIN, THAT'S WHAT FANFICTION IS FOR!

READ, REVIEW, AND MOST OF ALL, ENJOY.

(Italic is a slightly changed version of ending. I do not own that)

_5 Years Earlier..._

"_I'm going", Christian said. "Valentin, come with us. Please. We can start over. It will be real this time."_

_Valentin had his hands in his pockets, and he seemed to be writing something on the floor with his feet. For the first time since they'd known him, he looked ashamed. Christian smiled at him. "Come with us, Val."_

_Valentin shrugged and ran his slim hands through his hair. "I'm sorry Christian. But she didn't make me do anything. Ordinary just isn't enough for me." He lowered his head and walked toward Madame Vileroy._

_A sound somewhere between a laugh and a cry flew from Christian's mouth. Belle simply shook her head, a single tear rolling down her cheek, while Bice, the silent one, never made a sound, her dark gray eyes saying all the words her lips could not seem to form. Slowly, she lifted her head and her wide eyes met with his. Without another word, Belle and Christian ran to the ripped up wall and leaped onto the fire escape. With a last glance back at her former excuse for a family, Bice turned and followed her twin, her midnight raven locks flying out behind her. All three of the remainder were silent as the former Faust children escaped into the NYC nightlife. _

_When they were far enough away so that it would be impossible to follow, Vileroy turned and stared at her two remaining children. Her burning eye blazed with hate, but the rest of her was composed and regal as always. Victoria practically bowed onto the floor beside her. Valentin, however, did not acknowledge his "mother". Even though he had made his choice, all he could think of that was keeping him sane were those two gray eyes and the raven haired girl that came with them._

_And to think, he would never see either one of those things again. _

_(_Well? Like this little twist? Somehow, I need Valentin to love, or at least feel a lot of lust for someone, In a way that is not extremely creepy and illegal in every single state. We will now come back to real time! YAY!!!)

The Present Day

A lone figure sat at the bar on a late Sunday afternoon. His back was turned, but even with only his back facing you, you could tell that he was special. A well tailored suit hugged his lean, muscular frame, and his mop of dirty blond ringlets framed his face like a halo. Very ironic, he often mused, when you think about it.

Not that any of the girls surround him cared about his so-called "sins". All they cared about was the fact that Valentin Faust, the world famous romantic poet, was sitting in their midst. That, and how hot his ass looked in the strategically tailored suit. A quick smile danced across the young mans perfect lips. He could have his pick of any of the young ladies at the bar tonight. Even though's who were taken. In fact, he mused, why settle for one when you can have them all?

5 minutes later, Valentin was smugly reminiscing of all the terrible and unbelievably erotic things he had just done to 20 very easy-to-manipulate girls. He then sighed. His conquests were no longer amusing. They whet his appetite, but did not quench his thirst. His fame had come, and it had stayed, yet he was still not satisfied, no matter how much his governess tried to help on the subject. (CUE EXTREME GAGGING!) He wanted a challenge, he wanted something delicate and corruptibly pure. He wanted a certain pair of gray eyes to stare into his and commit unspeakable things....

Whoah. He kept on telling himself he would forget her, but that little bookworm just wouldn't let him go... Without another thought, he threw a hundred on the table, buttoned his dark gray coat around him, and headed back to the apartment.

Just before he walked through the door, the Madame walked up behind him, making him turn to face her head-on. She smiled coyly at him. "You do remember darling, what you must do to keep up your end of the bargain."

He nodded. He knew what he had to do. He had to kill Bice.


	2. Flashbacks, Pain, Lust, and Toffee

Bice POV

As Bice carried her carefully folded shirts into the closet, she remembered that fateful day 5 years before when everything had changed. So much was different now. Now there were only her, Belle, and Christian. The quiet mother figure, the reformed and once again lovely teenager, and the shy, quiet writer, who with his lovely prose got them by and allowed them to travel from place to place, seeing the world together. Christian would never rich, never be famous, but he got great reviews, and people who did read his work cherished it. He was so unlike Valentin, who's mushy yet addictive poems gave him fame and fortune and all the females he could ever want.

Valentin.

Her not-real-brother, the boy with the probing, laughing eyes, the head of curls, and the loud and seductive personality. It had been weeks since she thought of him. But no matter how much she tried to push him out of her mind, he always came back. Always.

"COME ON!" Belle shouted from the next room, driving Bice out of her thoughts. Without another word she wrapped herself in her red coat, pulled on a scarf, and walked out the door. It had been five years since she had last been in NY, this city that never sleeps. Five years since they broke their bonds with Vileroy. Five years since she had gazed into her brother's eyes.

Shaking her head clear, Bice squared her shoulders and walked out the door.

_Flashback-5 and a half years earlier_

More than anything else, Bice wanted solitude. Time to read, time to think, time to be alone.

Endless time.

She had all she wanted. But she knew what she wanted wasn't the same as happy.

With a sigh, she walked back to her original position, and time started up again. Belle continued brushing her hair, and Valentin, who had been frozen mid stride when she stopped everything, finished walking into the red room. All of a sudden he stopped, and his eyes flickered down her, eyeing her possessively and hungrily. Bice blushed with embarrassment, and then realized, to her horror, they she had forgotten to change out of her nightie. This particular one was white lace, and Bice knew Valentin could see her skin outlined perfectly in the light. With a faint shriek, she covered herself, and the next thing Valentin knew, she had seemingly vanished.

_Back in the Present Day_

With their heads buried in their coats and their faces to the pavement, no one noticed three handsome young adults walking down 5th Avenue. Not even the occasional former classmates and classmate's parent gave them a second glance. And that was just the way they liked it.

As they crossed into the Upper East Side, all of their walks became more slowed. Five years ago, they had walked these streets as privileged students. Now they were tourists and outcasts.

All the streets looked exactly the same though, until at last they came to a stop outside the hated apartment. The building's facade, once serene and perfect, was graffitied over, and a swarm of moths flew in and out of a broken window. It was a wreck, and a large one, but no one but the children noticed it as they walked down the rainy street.

Before they could reach the end of the avenue, Belle stopped in front of the beloved old cafe. Staring longingly at the toffee cookies she would have never before have dared to eat, she grabbed Bice's and Christian's hand and tugged them toward the doors. Christian came willingly, but Bice dragged her feet and managed to stay outside. While her two siblings were placing their orders, she peered out into the rain. As her eyes sliced through the mist, she thought she had caught of a glimpse of a curly blond head...Oh God.

There he was.

The boy who had caused her so much pain and longing. The boy who caused her heart to thud. The boy who had committed terrible things in the name of his instincts. The boy who, even though she didn't remember it, had done terrible things to her.

_Flashback- 5 and a 1/2 Years Earlier._

Still writhing from embarrassment, Bice unfroze time and quickly began to but on the biggest robe she had. Just as she was tying the knot, a certain bastard stopped in the door.

"Hey Bice. Nice robe."

Whirling around, Bice came face to face with the perverted poet himself. He was suddenly right next to her, and breathing gently onto her ear.

"Personally..." his long fingers touched her arm. "I like you better..." it was sliding down her side now.

"Without it."

His hand lay wrapped around the knot. Bice was frozen. She was scared and shocked, and, and...

Was she actually excited?

When Bice didn't respond, Valentin twisted his hand, untying the knot, and let it fall to the ground. Bice stood there, in her see through nightie, silent in the darkness. His hot breath tickled her lips, and the brother laid his lips ever so roughly on his sister's.

Before Bice could react, time jumped back, to the point just before Valentin stepped into the room. Before he mentioned her robe.

No one but Valentin would ever know the passion Valentin felt when he laid his mouth on his sister's lips.

_Present Day_

_Bice POV_

It was him.

It had to be.

It couldn't be.

It was impossible.

"_He's even more gorgeous than before." _She thought.

And finally. "_He can't see me."_

But at that moment, the poet turned around, his evil eyes meeting Bice's gray orbs, his mouth turning up in a smirk, and his mind screaming to him not to kill the one thing in the world he cared about.

The one thing in the world he ached for more than anything.


	3. He Can't See Past My Eyes

**I DONT HAVE WRITERS BLOCK ANYMORE!**

**Sorry to my readers about not updating, and for this short chapter. My aunt is terribly sick, and I pretty much wrote this on a plane. But enjoy, and hopefully, there will be lots more Bice/Val lovin soon! **

**Thank you so much to my reviewers. You guys made my day today.**

**Disclaimer: Don't Own, They Do, Don't Sue**

Bice POV

At least, that's what, deep down, she hoped he was saying.

Valentin POV

It had been lovely when Valentin had stepped out onto the street below his...not-a-home. But the weather, reflecting his mood, had turned gloomy and gray. Burying his head in the collar of his coat, he stalked down the sidewalk, ignoring the sideways glances every woman gave him, his blond curls dampening the the drizzling rain.

Then he saw her.

She wasn't Bice. She couldn't be, Bice had left him long ago. And she was too...shapely, to be Bice. It was one of the things he had loved about his sister...her tiny figure was so innocent, when he pictured what he wished to do to her, it made it so much better.

But she was gorgoues, he had to admit that. Her floaty hair was blonde and silky, her stature delicate, and her wide eyes a deep, piercing...green.

Even so, she was more like Bice then any girl he'd ever seen, and that was enough for his heart to pump just a little bit faster, his breath to come a little bit quicker, and for his cheeks to flush, despite the chilly rain.

He had to meet her.

Or at least, had to claim her, then turn back time, and never see her again.

Bice POV

_He didn't see me._

_But he's looking straight at me!_

_The disguise._

When Bice had come to NY, out of habit, she and Belle hadtried to change their original appearance. Bice became a green-eyed blonde, and Belle...well, Belle didn't need a disguise anymore.

But Bice, being Bice, had forgotten...and had then deluded herself into thinking that, not only did Valentin remember her, or recognize her, but he wouldn't hurt her, even if he did.

Obviously, she had been deluding herself.

_But then, why is he turning toward me, and smiling, and... Oh God. He's crossing the street. He's standing in front of me. He's saying something. Listen!_

_That voice._

Stumbling out of her thoughts, Bice rubbed her eyes. "Im sorry, what?"

Valentin smirked.

"What I was saying is... you seem to be the most lovely, passionate, vibrant person I have ever been lucky enough to meet. Would you like to..." he stroked her arm gently. "Go someplace?" The line was lame, but his eyes made up for it ten-fold.

_I would love nothing more._

But of course, she didn't say that. Instead, she shook her head bluntly, muttered "No thanks." and ran into the coffee shop, leaving a stunned Valentin behind.

**Short and sweet. Reviews equal love.**


	4. Who Knew Love Could Feel So Bad

**Just Because I'm Beautiful Doesn't Mean I'm Wonderful**

**I want to say thank you to my wonderful readers. Your messages of support, and sweet and helpful reviews are always nice to see. I hope this chapter will give you as much pleasure as you do me! **

**Disclaimer: Don't own, they do, don't sue, thank you! (BTW, the White Room does not belong to me either!)**

**(Italics are thought, Bold Italic is...well...you'll figure it out.**

Valentin POV

_What the heck...hell...Vileroy was that? How dare she spurn me. No woman ever says no to me. I'm F'ING VALENTIN FAUST!_

But even as he said that, Valentin knew that wasn't completely true. There was one other girl who had said no. One other girl who got away.

That would _never_ happen again.

_At least, if I can help it._

Belle POV

_There is truly nothing nicer, _Belle thought, _then sitting in a cafe in a couch near the back, eating toffee nut cookies, and talking with Bice and Christian._

5 years ago, Old Belle would have sniffed at it all; the terrible location, the fattening treats, and her socializing options consisting of her twin and her...whatever he was . But a different Belle sat in the cafe today, a Belle she was convinced had changed for the better.

Even if this Belle had a whole new face.

As if sensing her slight discomfort, Christian leaned in and placed a warm, calloused hand on Belle's.

"You all right?"

"Fine." Belle grinned. "At least, I will be, when Bice gets here. Where is she?"

"No clue."

Seeing the sudden look of worry on his sister's face, Christian pulled in Belle for a tight squeeze.

"It's OK. This is BICE we're talking about. She'll be fine."

Belle's lovely eyes, the one part of her old face that remained, looked up into Christian's blushing face.

"Thank you, Christian."

"Any time."

A moment passed between them, and Belle felt a tug in her heart, a tug she hadn't felt for years, since Thomas, rear itself again.

"Belle..." Christian muttered.

"Yes?"

"I..."

"BELLE!"

Bice came barreling into the cafe, and after pushing aside several well coiffed trophy wives, came to a rest in front on Belle's and Christian's booth, showering them both in a flurry of droplets. The moment was ruined, and Belle was upset, but she couldn't help but feel the tiniest bit happy at the sight of her twin.

"What's up Bice?"

Bice was silent.

"Bice?"

Still nothing.

"Bice?"

"He found me."

Christian leaped to his feet. "Who found you?"

As Bice stared at Christian with wide, green eyes, Belle felt a sudden chill rushing up her spine.

Bice took a deep, shaky breath.

"Valentin."

Valentin POV

He had meant to take a walk. All he wanted lately was to get as far away as the aptly named hell hole as possible, but somehow, he always ended up right back where he started.

_That's the thing about Hell. _Valentin realized. _No matter how many times you try to get away, you always end up right back where you started._

Before he knew it, he was at the door of the duplex. Sliding his key into the lock, he clicked open the door, hung up his coat, and stalked off to his room. The hallway was dank and dark, and the heaviness never seemed to go away. He was almost in the sanctuary of his own place when all of a sudden, a skinny human form, pale as the moon, slammed into him.

"What do you want, Victoria?"

Victoria didn't say anything. She NEVER said anything. Life was too much to handle for her now. All she did lately outside was go to the trophy shops, ask for them to be engraved with her name, and then bring them home with her. She loved her trophies, more than anything else.

Valentin supposed that was better than him, at least. He may be getting a whole lot more lust (and action) than Victoria, but at least Victoria had SOMETHING to love, to feel affection for. He loved nothing.

_NOTHING!_

An uncertain, shaky grin began to cross his face, and Valentin took the last few, desperate steps into the White Room.

_Home free._

He was in.

Feeling a new rush of energy come over him, he stood in the center facing the window, staring longingly into the light.

He took a step.

He knew exactly what he wanted to change.

But then, like always, a sudden wave of pain and nausea washed over him. He could not move. He could not speak.

But he could feel the talons of the Madame pierce his skin, and her honey and brine voice gently coaxing him out of the room, until he was left in the hallway again, choking, exhausted.

The only change was that Vileroy came to a stop in front of him, her fire eye burning into his.

**You didn't succeed.**

_Get out of my head._

_**Y**_**ou said you were going to kill her. That is our agreement.**

_GET OUT OF MY HEAD!_

A pause.

_Your agreement. Not mine. Never mine._

**It's all the same to me, dear. And The fact that you didn't take her, when you had the chance...**

_I haven't seen her for five years._

**No Valentin. Not five years. 15 minutes.**

_What do you...?_

Suddenly, everything made sense.

The wide eyes, the dark roots in the blonde mane, the shyness...all Bice.

Valentin felt the most pure, most sick type of pleasure he'd felt for the last five years.

**You Will have your trophy, your pleasure. And then you will kill her. Yes?**

_Yes._

The last thing Valentin felt before he blacked out was a huge carnal burn of happiness, and the knowledge that before long, Bice would be his.

His, and his alone.

**MWUAHAHA! Writing this last chappie made me feel EVIL! I hope you liked it! Or at least, I hope you got a shiver down your spine!**

**Review Responses...the best: Elinor and XX (my nicknames for you guys, tell me if you want me to change them!), thank you for your dutiful and funny reviews. I agree, this needs to be a happy ending, mostly because I HATE sad endings, but I'm also trying to stay within character, or how the characters would be after five years, and I doubt Valentin, after being cooped up with the bitch and the witch, as I call them, would be the kindest guy you'd meet. But I promise, he will come through! Eventually! :)**

**Also...This week will feature a poll on my page, asking about an important twist. Please vote, I have so many ideas and I don't know which one the readers might most appreciate!**

**Reviews=Love! **


	5. From the Mind of a Woman

**IM UPDATING BETTER EVERY CHAP!**

**Today, you, my dear readers, will be able to enjoy a Girl's POV chappie! No boys allowed in this fanfic today! **

**Disclaimer: Don't own, they do, don't sue, thank you!**

**Bice POV**

The more Bice thought about it, the more she realized that nothing would ever be the same for her.

It had been five years since she had seen his piercing eyes stare into hers. And she had thought that five years had been enough to start the healing process. Enough to erase the thoughts of the boy who could play with time from her mind forever.

But as today had shown, she was as far from being cured as she had been when they had made their escape from the dreaded apartment.

_Then again,_ she pondered, _perhaps the encounter today was my final test of will. My final struggle. A final sign. Maybe, just maybe, seeing him again, in all his glory, is what I needed to put him from my mind forever._

Bice knew she was fighting a losing battle, but still, _a girl can hope._

**Belle POV**

_Christian sure smells nice today. Every day. They could bottle his scent. Fresh paper and ink, leather, soap, and... _

"Wonderful." Murmured Belle.

_He's wonderful._

"Belle?" whispered Christian.

"What's wonderful?"

_Damn it._

"Nothing Christian. Just thinking out loud."

"Oh." With a slightly disappointed frown on his face, Christian turned away towards the window, watching the beating rain stream over the taxi, soaking the packs on unlucky tourists who had forgotten to pack an umbrella.

"_Maybe this is why Bice is so strange lately, _Belle thought. _All these feelings are making me crazy._

Because even though Bice had never disclosed who she had said feelings for, Belle was almost certain that her twin no longer had any feelings for her brother.

Well... for one of her brothers.

**Victoria POV**

Darkness.

So much darkness.

Cut by little flashes of sparkle.

Flashes of metal.

_My trophies._

The only bit of sanity in her totally insane world.

She didn't speak. She didn't read. When Valentin came in, she would run to him, and he would kick her away, like a dog.

She ate when she was hungry, drank when she was thirsty, and all the time, she got her trophies.

They came in boxes, big cardboard monstrosities.. When they arrived at her door, the world seemed right. She would bring them inside, and rip them open, using her bloody nails, her sore teeth. She would pull them up, up, up out of the styrofoam, and the plastic would glisten in the dim light.

_Beautiful._

And then her mind would take over, and she heard everyone, everything. So much thinking in the world. All of it so loud.

And she would hear her father's voice, so proud of his little girl, with a brother who had left. So proud of his little lady, who showed him her trophies for employee of the month, for chess, for Little League.

So, so many trophies.

They were her friends and family now.

And her daddy couldn't be more proud.

**Reviews=Love**

**Thank you for reading.**


	6. How a Lust Began

**So...**

**I get I haven't updated in over two months. Sorry bout that. School is absolutely crazy (in a good way) and I could never get myself to open up a new document.**

**But today, i found the book again, and inspiration struck. Enjoy!**

**Don't Own, They Do, Don't Sue, Thank You!**

_Flashback: 10 years earlier._

_Valentin POV_

Tonight was the night. The night he had been waiting for. The night that he would run away from his bastard of a mother, and his wimp of a father. He should feel excited, ELATED even.

But all he felt was fear.

Before he could begin to totally freak out, the beautiful lady from the cafe placed a manicured hand on his shoulder and led him through a dark passageway. He had no sight, no sound.

And then...there was light.

When his eyes had adjusted, he found two other girls sitting around a worn kitchen table. One was awkwardly biting her nails, the other was gazing up at the lady, a look of complete adoration clear upon her face. The lady quickly squeezed his shoulder, her nails biting into skin, then shoved him quickly into a chair next to the biting girl.

"I'm Belle." she whispered.

"Valentin."

"Valentin?" the other girl laughed. "What kind of name is THAT?"

"It's MY name."

She smirked. "Sure it is. I'm Victoria. Pleasure, I'm sure."

"The honors all mine." Valentin sneered. Victoria raised an eyebrow, but before she could retort the lady pulled up a chair and sat down, facing the three children with a condescending look on her face.

"Where's Bice?" Belle stuttered. "Where did you put her?"

"Who's Bice?" Valentin asked.

"My twin! She's scared, and passed out, and...tell me where she is!"

"Never mind that." The children froze at the sound of the lady's voice. It was sickly sweet, condescending, loving, and...it was hateful. All at once. It was a voice of honey and brine, one that had coerced great men to drop bombs and kill innocents. It was a voice of POWER.

And power was one thing that the children understood.

_5 Hours Later_

There was no turning back now. The boy who had watched another man fondle his mother while his father slept unawares was dead, He was Valentin Faust now. He would do great things.

Right now though, all he wanted to do was sleep.

Padding quietly down the hallway, he placed his hand on the nearest doorway. Pushing it lightly, it swung open with a creak to reveal a bed, and on that bed...

There was a girl.

She looked like just like Belle used to look, from her silky black hair to her thin, petite figure. But unlike her sister, there was a look on her face that was so simple, so pure. She was not greedy, she was not evil. She slept as if she hadn't a care in the world, not knowing the hellhole she would awaken into.

Valentin knew she would never again sleep so simply.

But for that moment, she was at peace. And all Valentin wanted, at that moment, was her. Not to rule the world, not to bask in fame.

He wanted to lie down beside her.

So he did.

As he timidly tucked his curls into her shoulder, Valentin realized something else.

He was happy.


	7. How a lust Began Part 2

**So, umm...it's been a while. I feel like a jerk, but school and acting and everything leaves no time to write stuff that isn't absolutely horrid. But I have a sick day, so here, is the second installment of 'How a Lust Began". I hope you enjoy, and expect many more chapters to come!**

**Reviews=Love**

_7 years earlier_

_Valentin POV_

Valentin was, for the first time in a long while, happy. Truly, madly happy. In Madame Vileroy's house, with no parents, and no rules, he felt more restrained than he ever had in his entire life. But now, for just one moment, he was free.

Free with his favorite little girl in the world.

As he and Bice strolled through the streets of Paris, trekking through the snow and splashing through puddles, a wave of emotion washed over him that he had not felt in a long time. And in that rare moment of weakness, he decided he wanted to catch a glimpse of his parents.

"Bice!" he called, tugging her with his gloved hand. "Will you PLEASE hurry up?"

Bice giggled softly. "But why Valentin? It's so beautiful here. Surely you can't just ignore the art, the magic...the, the romance of Paris?"

For a moment, Valentin forgot why he wanted to go in the first place, but in a moment he snapped out of it and anxiously tugged her down the cobbled path, toward the apartment and the people inside that he loathed so much.

When they came to the building, Valentin paused. So many memories came flooding back. There was the window where he had seen his father slumped on the desk while his mother romanced another man. There was the window where the Madame had crept through and swept him away to fulfill all his hopes and desires. Which she had...almost. There was just one carnal need which he still needed to fulfill, and it lay with the innocent 13 year old girl who tightly gripped his hand, skipping back and forth and occasionally reading a paragraph from her latest book.

He took a deep breathe, inhaling her scent. Peaches. He decided then that he now loved peaches.

Just as he was about to screw proper conduct, sweep her off her feet, and kiss her, she ripped her hand free and pointed to the window.

"_Pour la vente. _Valentin, if you were trying to see someone, I don't think anyone lives there anymore.

For a moment Valentin was shocked. Then he decided that he really didn't care, after all.

"Whatever, Bice, it doesn't matter."

"You sure?" she asked, her big eyes staring into his.

"I am." He roughly grabbed her hand in his, trying to forget how small, petite, and lovely it was. Just like her. He couldn't slip up now.

It would ruin everything.

Valentin wasn't quite sure when he stopped looking at Bice as more than a friend. As a handsome young man, he often got flirty giggles and whispers from those of the opposite sex, but for some reason the only time he really got excited about a girl was when he was with Bice.

It didn't hurt that he'd seen her in nothing but a robe multiple, wonderful times, but still! He was Valentin Faust, charmer of women, poet, and only 13 years old. He was a handsome young man who loved acknowledgement as much as Victoria loved her accomplishments. He could turn back time, seduce any woman, and rule the world. He had everything. Almost every award and trophy he could imagine.

There was one trophy, however, that he was particularly desperate to claim, to take as his, and his alone.

If any other man even TOUCHED her...

He didn't know how long it would be before he snapped.

"Bice" he whispered, his breath tickling the inside of her ear.

"Yes Valentin?"

"Come with me."

Before she could attempt to protest he was dragging her through the streets again, leaving a trail of slush in their wake. He was losing control, he knew what he was about to do was wrong, but he couldn't stand the need. He had to have her.

And where better to take away the innocence of the girl he loved than the place where his was broken?

In minutes they stood in front of the studio apartment where his mother and her painter had betrayed him. Lifting Bice up, he carried her bridal style, despite her protests, up to the top floor. With a firm kick he broke the door down and in one fell swoop had tossed Bice onto to the bed.

Finally, after the last 3 years of waiting, she was going to be his.

**EVIL CLIFFIE!**

**But like I said, review, and stay tuned for the third installment of "How a Lust Began". Also, canon related thoughts are always appreciated.**

**And FYI, according to Google Translate, Pour la vente means "FOR SALE" in French.**


	8. How a Lust Began Part 3

**Sooooooo...**

**In these last few chapters, you have seen the past. You have seen the future...but as xx so rightly mentioned in her very sweet review, you have not see the present.**

**So here, my dear readers, is the final of the 3-Part chapter story, How A Lust Began. Warning, it might be slightly OOC, and most definitely M, but this is what I imagine Valentin becoming after being locked up with Vileroy and Victoria. Keep an eye on the POVS. Enjoy, and remember: Reviews=Love.**

_3 Years Earlier_

_Valentin POV_

All his work. All his headaches, his heartaches, none of that would matter after tonight. Tonight he was going to do what the Madame had been preparing him for for the last 7 years. Tonight, he was going to kill.

And it was going to be wonderful.

Valentin couldn't remember the exact moment when he became ruthless. Maybe it was when the old, no-longer-in-service english teacher had scoffed at the only poem he had actually worked to create. Maybe it was when Madame Vileroy had scorned him, and his carnal needs, because he was "too kind".

Or maybe it was the moment when the girl who was the love of his life jumped out the window and ran away. No matter how much he knew he meant to her. She wouldn't stay for him.

And tonight, some innocent victim, handpicked by Vileroy, would be the outlet on which he extracted his vengeance.

_From a poet to writer. Writer to murderer._

And if Vileroy had her way, murderer to politician. Not that he wanted too, of course. But he couldn't deny the lust he had for power, for fame, for the ability to decide the fate of millions...he had to admit that all sounded very sweet.

No time for that though. Tonight, he had to focus. One meaningless kill. The last of his goodness in return for the absolute power Vileroy could give him. An easy bargain in his mind. Perhaps their was one ounce of a conscience left in his burned out soul, but that voice was quickly snuffed and Valentin continued down the his hotel staircase, out onto the crowded sidewalk of London in the direction of a much less fine hotel, a silver knife carefully concealed in his pocket.

It was going to be an interesting evening, to say the least.

_Bice POV_

_London. _

Bice grinned broadly, gently unzipping the close on her suitcase. All her worldly possessions were enclosed in the little bag. Tomorrow, she was going to walk around, take in the landmarks with her 'brother' and twin, breathing the untainted air that for so long had not been theirs. It was still hard to believe that less than 3 years ago, they had been locked away in dark red house which stifled the mind and crippled the soul. Sure, they were poor, desperate for work, and lonely. But with the money they scraped together, they were able to stay on the run, staying always in the most beautiful cities.

They had each other. And they were happy.

_Valentin POV_

_He was happy. _

Wasn't he? It had been so long since he had been truly happy that he'd almost forgotten what the emotion felt like. All the happiness and goodness had gone and vanished from his world, and he had no idea where to find her.

All he knew is that when he found Bice, wherever he found her, he could sway her to his side, take her as his, and rule the world as his queen.

But before all that, he had to kill.

_Bice POV_

_But first, bed._

Yawning widely, Bice unzipped her skirt and let it fall to the floor. Struggling with her shirt, she frowned at the buttons.

_Why on earth would anyone need this many buttons? Stupid, frilly clothes._

_Valentin POV_

_And when he found her, he would rip off her shirt, tearing the buttons and making her..._

His fantasy was interrupted by the sight of the hotel where the unnamed victim lay.

_Soon. So soon._

Vileroy had said that if he did this job, he could have whatever he wanted. She knew what he wanted. And apparently, she was willing to give it too him, no matter how much she hated Bice.

_Bice POV_

All Bice wanted was to go to sleep. A sharp knock on the door startled her from slumber, but a quick peer through the peephole and she opened the door to her sister's smiling face.

"Hey, Bice, Christian says if you really want to, you can squeeze in with us and he'll sleep on a cot."

Actually, that's what Bice DID want, but her sister's wide eyes begged otherwise, and who was she to deny the two a night alone? She had seen the way Christian looked at her sister.

"I'm fine Belle. You go back to bed, I'll be alright."

"OK, sis. Love you."

"I love you too."

In her haste for sleep, Bice forgot to lock the door behind her.

_Valentin POV_

With his luck tonight, the victim's door would be unlocked.

_It is_.

Treading softly, Valentin crept across the room to the bed. Right before he committed the deed, however, he wanted to see his victim's face. To see their anguish when he stabbed them through the heart. Maybe that look could fill his ache.

Gently, and with no sudden movements, he flipped the slumbering innocent over.

Valentin couldn't help but gasp out when he saw the face.

"_Bice."_

_Bice POV_

When Bice slept, she could finally forget the outside world. Dreams were everchanging, some nightmares and some raptures. And when someone flipped her over, she thought she was still in one.

It was a man. Handsome, a halo of blond curls resting on his dashing face. The look on his face was somewhere between a gasp and a look of carnal wanting.

Bice recognized that look all too well.

"VALENTIN!"

In a moment, he had her pressed against the bed, covering her mouth with his and swallowing her scream. Bice kicked and punched, but suddenly he touched her where she ached, a place no other boy had touched her, and she lost it. She kissed him back, wrapping her arms around him and burying her hands deep into his curls. In a moment he lifted her up, readjusted her legs, and slammed her into the wall, kissing away the yelp she uttered from the bitter, shocking pain. She kissed him harder, he kissed her back, making her hair askew, her lips bleed, but she didn't mind at all. She felt an odd hardness pressing against her leg, one she had read about, but never touched. She longed for it, for HIM. For him to be inside her, to take her, to whisk her away like a fairy tale, lock her in his tower, and ravish her whenever he wanted. She fingered the hardness, and the growl he uttered was not like that of a man, but that of an animal. His hips were buckling from his self restraint, but he did not push, he continued kissing her, smelling her, touching her wherever possible. Finally, though, he could take it no longer. He ripped her already torn nightie to shreds, ready to commit the deed she had spent long nights tossing over. But then, something stopped him.

Bice looked to where he had turned. There, lying on the floor, was a gleaming silver knife. This time she really did screamed, and pushed a startled Valentin off her, cowering against the head of the bed.

_He came here...to kill me._

The realization shocked them both. Valentin tried to explain, but he had no words. They both knew what he had come into the room to do. Bice was heartbroken...but Valentin. Valentin looked furious. Furious and dangerous.

"VILEROY!" he screamed. "IS THIS WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME? You sent me...to kill HER?"

Bice grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her, staring up at Valentin, tears pouring down her face. He stretched out a hand to brush them away, but she slapped him away, her eyes turning from sad to..to disappointed. He fell to the floor, crying, screaming, rolling in his anguish at what he had come there to do. Bice longed to comfort him, but she had to flee. He was too much under Vileroy's thumb for it to be safe for her now. She tried to run, but before she could reach the door she was flung around and slammed to the ground.

Valentin glared at her coldly. Something inside of him had snapped, the goodness was gone, blown out like a candle, but his need was still there, and Bice knew that he wouldn't listen to her pleas this time.

He was just about to pin her down when she kneed him in the groin.

Gasping with pain, he rolled on his back. Belle and Christian had been woken by the thumping, and they were just about to encounter Valentin when Bice tugged on them screaming for them to "Run!"

And that's all that Valentin heard of Bice for the next two years.


End file.
